Oneshots: past present and future
by 123me
Summary: Oneshots i have written, set in the past present and future.
1. Where life truly lies

**This isn't chapter story, it's just a series of oneshots, I've started them because sometimes I have no ideas for my series stories but want to keep myself writing, it probably won't be updated much, anyway, here's the first one.**

**The character of Roxie is based on my friend Kerry, through writing the speech for her i was thinking, "What would Kerry say?" and trust me, most of it, she would say, even though she is a lot older than Roxie (although you wouldn't know it if it was based on mentality.), she'd probably agree with that.**

* * *

**Where life truly lies**

Troy Bolton walked into his family home to nothing but the sound of the blaring TV; he looked towards it, noticing the cartoon his seven-year-old-daughter must have fallen asleep watching.

He smiled at the sight and went and sat by her, watching her sleep.

"Back again?" He heard a familiar voice ask him from behind.

"Just got here," He answered, turning to an almost exact copy of his wife.

"How long for this time?" His eldest daughter asked, he knew that his near common absences affected the twelve-year-old almost as much as they affected her mother, he hated being away from them, but that's what being a national star included.

"Few weeks at least," He tried telling her, knowing he had longer than that, but not wanting to discuss it with a child.

Lauren glared back, he knew that in her opinion, she'd seen nothing but him coming and going in her twelve short years.

"Does mom know you're back?" The girl asked, rudely pushing her sister's feet onto the floor and sitting down.

Troy watched as his younger daughter stirred in her sleep, but didn't feel that he had the right to discipline her sister, Lauren probably wouldn't listen anyway.

"She knows that I'm coming back today, yeah," He replied.

"That's not what I asked," The girl pointed out, "Perhaps I should be clearer, your not used to being around us after all, Does mom know you're here now?"

"Not exactly," He admitted, "Where is she?"

"Asleep," Lauren stated, "I've heard being a single parent is tiring, she sleeps whenever Roxie and Jake sleep."

"Lauren, your mother is not a single parent," He sternly told his daughter, trying to avoid showing her that her words got to him.

"She might as well be," The girl shot back, "You're never here to be a parent."

He turned his stare off of the twelve-year-olds face as his younger daughter once again stirred and woke up.

"DADDY!" The young girl squealed, jumping up and running over to him, she climbed onto his lap and started talking a mile a minute, "We went to the park yesterday, and mommy got us some ice cream, and Lori fell off the swing and she cried, and Uncle Zeke gave us cookies, and they were chocolate, and Lori threw hers at me, so I threw half of mine at her and ate the rest, and she says it's because I'm a pig, and then I started going oink, and Uncle Chad said you were a pig, so I asked if you go oink and he said sometimes, and it was funny, and Auntie Taylor hit him, and that was more funny."

Troy listened intently to his daughter's speech, a smile forming on his face, Roxie had always been a chatterbox, the kid just couldn't be quiet, she even talked in her sleep, although that was normally just incoherent mumbling, he had once had an understandable conversation with her while she was in a deep slumber.

"Really?" He asked, emphasising his interest to encourage her to continue.

"Then Uncle Chad and Lori started playing basketball with Uncle Zeke and Auntie Taylor and Mommy started talking about you," The child continued, unaware that her mother probably didn't want her father to know about that particular conversation that had occurred between her and her best friend, " Auntie Taylor said that mommy should talk to you, but that's silly because mommy talks to you everyday on the phone."

Troy faked a smile for the sake of his younger daughter, he could feel Lauren's eyes burning into him, she'd never let him call her Lori like everyone else did, and now she knew that Taylor had said something about his common absences, she would probably make it even harder for him to bond with her.

"How about…" He began as he glanced at his watch, "we make mommy some dinner?"

"Yeah," Roxie exclaimed, "Mommy eats."

"It's 5, she'll be asleep till Jake wakes up at 6, so you have just over an hour," Lauren decided to put in, making Troy feel uncomfortable, his daughter knew his son's sleeping habits better than he did.

Roxie jumped up yet again and dragged him into the kitchen, "We cook daddy," she told him as she took a packet of chocolate biscuits off of the side that had obviously been left out.

"Rox, we're not having chocolate biscuits for dinner," He stated, smiling at his child's cheeky attempt.

"But Mommy likes chocolate biscuits," Roxie continued trying in the hope that she'd find a working excuse.

Troy took the biscuits off of her and put them higher up so she couldn't reach, "We don't have chocolate biscuits for dinner, we have pasta."

"Lori likes pasta," Roxie told him, "Lori says that pasta is yum."

"Hey, why don't you go ask Lori if she wants to help make the pasta?" Troy suggested, wanting to get them both involved.

He watched Roxie smile and run out of the room, moments later she retuned, dragging her sister with her.

"Dad, Roxie can't cook, you can't be serious in letting her help," Lauren complained when she was pulled in the room.

"Come on Lauren," He encouraged, "It'll be fun, just like the old times."

"Since when have you ever cooked with us?" Lauren replied, her attitude momentarily reappearing.

"Not times with you," Troy admitted, "Times with your mom."

"Oh, so you mean the Old, Old times," Lauren giggled, that comment also got a laugh out of Roxie, who had somehow managed to get her hands on the chocolate biscuits and was now sitting on the floor eating them.

"Hilarious Lauren, absolutely hilarious," Troy answered sarcastically as he once again took the biscuits off of Roxie, Lauren took them off of him and put them in a cupboard that was out of her sister's reach, "You seriously need to get a checklist of what needs to be out of her reach." The twelve-year-old grinned then decided it was time they started cooking, "So, we're making pasta, right?"

* * *

Gabriella looked over at the clock when she woke up, she felt considerably more rested and put this down to getting fifteen minutes extra sleep, but she couldn't help worrying that her son hadn't woken her at his usual time. 

"Mommy, you have to come eat," She heard the small voice of Roxie demand.

She smiled at her daughter's voice, but changed her expression when she realised what the child had said, "Please do not tell me Lori has tried to cook again."

"And me and daddy," The child grinned, pulling her mother up, "Mommy, Daddy wouldn't let me have the biscuits for dinner."

She sighed to herself, she had forgotten he was coming back today, and had, in a way, been dreading it, he'd been away for over a month, and she knew Taylor was right, she had to tell him that she couldn't live like this anymore, he couldn't keep coming and going like he was.

"Come on Mommy," Roxie exclaimed and pulled on her arm.

Reluctantly she followed her daughter downstairs and into the dining room, she smiled at the sight when she got there, plates of pasta were on the table, Lori and Troy were talking, obviously about basketball, Jake was sitting quietly in his high chair, something she herself had never managed to achieve.

Troy looked up when he felt her gaze and smiled at her, "Your up," He stated the obvious, but it didn't bother her, she was suddenly happy, this was the family life she had always wanted.

She nodded as Roxie forced her into a seat and sat next to her.

"Langley asked me something interesting today," Troy started conversation, referring to his boss, eager to avoid awkward silences, "He wants me to go and promote basketball in England for a year, thinks they don't play enough over there, thinks I should go immediately."

"When are you leaving?" Gabriella asked almost immediately.

"I'm not," He told her, "I said No, and when I said No he said I should think carefully before saying that, because Yes and No is the difference between employment and unemployment."

"Can he do that?" She asked, secretly pleased that he wasn't going.

"Not anymore, see, I figured I don't need that life, I don't even want that life, the life I want and need is right here, with you guys, so I quit." He explained.

He heard the clanging of metal dropping on plates as both his wife and eldest daughter dropped their knives and forks, he looked from one to the other, both were gaping in amazement, "What?" he asked, pretending he didn't know what the big deal was.

"You gave up your dream?" Gabriella asked after a long pause.

"Nope," He answered truthfully, "I gave up what was keeping me from my dream, this family is my dream, it always has been, I just wish I'd noticed sooner."

"I had a dream that a sponge was trying to eat me," Roxie spoke up, making the three elder members of the family laugh, "But it's ok, because Uncle Chad said sponges don't eat you, crocodiles eat you, and then Auntie Taylor said that crocodiles will eat him if he's not careful." She confidently added, ignoring her family's laughs.

"It's a different kind of dream," Troy explained to the child, "This dream is real."

"Dreams can be real?" She asked in awe.

"Only if you make them real," Gabriella answered for him, still smiling on the outside.

"Does that mean that the sponges will eat me?" The child exclaimed fearfully.

"Not a chance," Troy reassured her, "It'd have to fight me first."

"Dad, do you realise you just said your going to fight a sponge?" Lori asked mockingly curious.

"Daddy will fight a sponge for you too Lori," Roxie decided, proving her naivety.

"I'd fight off sponges for all of you, you know that," Troy continued.

"Oh God," Lori sighed in annoyance, then added cheekily, "Bet the sponge would beat ya."

"Big mistake," Gabriella told her daughter as Troy stood up and walked around the table to her.

"Why?" Lori asked, not noticing her father's movements as she fixed her eyes on her mother, she squealed as Troy started tickling her, while telling her, "your mom hasn't made a mistake like that in a long time, but one day, just like you did, she'll slip up."

"Not a chance," Gabriella giggled.

When Troy finally released his eldest daughter, whom was laughing hysterically by then, he looked around at his family, he couldn't help but feel disappointed over what he had missed, but he was glad he had finally found where life truly lies.

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**I didn't think it was that good, but then i don't think many of my stories are good but i'm assured by everyone that reads them that they are. So Review.**


	2. Roxie's dream

**To begin with there are some things you should know:**

**This is a oneshot spin off to where life truly lies.**

**It was co-written by kerry-louise.**

**There are quite a few AN's throughout the story, ones from me will start with L:, one's by Kerry will start with K:**

**Pretty simple.**

**There are quite a few scientific facts, one of the author's notes explains why.**

**It's comedy, do not take it seriously, it is seriously random.**

**This story really reflects my school personality; I'm completely different there to what I am at home.**

**It's a very short story, i mean VERY short.**

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**Roxie's dream**

I was on the cheesy moon, looking down on a faraway kingdom. I looked down at my feet and realised how much the moon looked like a sponge. I looked up again and decided to see if I could fly. As soon as I jumped off the moon to fly, I saw it's sponge-like surface transform into a huge, oversized bath.

Then I realised I couldn't fly; I was falling into the water of the bath. I landed on top of the water; I didn't sink, so now I'm less dense than water (**L: Scientific fact people, if anything is less dense that water, it will float, haha, we are writing this in science, if anyone asks, from now on, the notebook this is in is my science book) **Suddenly, a sponge jumped out of the plughole, it was an angry sponge, I screamed as it ran across the water towards me, I got up and started running, the water was splashing under my feet so my shoes were clean, the cleaner my shoes got, the faster the sponge could run, but I got faster too, I turned around, looking at the sponge, it had it's mouth open, and it had teeth, it was going to eat me, and I was going to be famous like daddy, death by sponge, it'd break a world record, then the enormous bath started emptying and I was sucked down the plughole.

I was swirling (**K: This reminded me of the wizard of Oz) **around and around. I started to scream for Mommy and Daddy, but they couldn't hear me, I looked up and could see the sponge falling after me, I started screaming louder, the sponge was circling like a witch, he had a recycling symbol on his head (**K: Science fact, human beings are recycled dinosaurs) (L: It's true, the atoms went in the plants, the animals ate the plants and we ate the animals) **there was an evil man, floating down like Mary Poppins, but he had a pineapple on his head, he turned into another sponge, making two of them, but then he disappeared into thin air.

The other sponge was now calling me, "Roxie," I didn't want to look up but it carried on calling, "Roxie," How did it know my name? **(L: Haha, the atom model just fell apart, I wonder what it is now, there's no oxygen in it anymore.) (L: ok it's fixed now, I can carry on writing, and apparently the model is a fatty acid.) (L: Living things are simple, totally made of simple chemicals, LOL), (K: Shut up and write) **The swirling stopped as I hit solid ground, the sponge landed next to me with a thud, it was looking at me, already crunching it's teeth together. I screamed again as it lunged at me, he was saying I'd die before I found out about skleep.

I woke up as a pillow hit my head.

"Quit screaming, some of us are trying to skleep." Lori complained.

"Skleep?" I asked fearfully, shaken by the nightmare.

"Oh just shut up," My sister ordered, slamming her head into her remaining pillow as I heard Mommy's voice from outside the door. I knew then that I was ok.

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**Review, seriously, we really want to know what you think about this.**


	3. Seven Years

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I decided to make this a oneshot instead, because the second part was just short, so i added it to this.

This was originally going to be a full story, but I already have two running and don't really want to start another one right now. 

**This one is not co written.**

**It's based on your comments for my first oneshot, I was told I should do more family stories; this one is different to the first though.**

* * *

"Lexie, didn't we discuss this?" Troy Bolton asked his ten-year-old daughter. 

"No, you said you regretted leaving, but you never got round to why you left in the first place, I was three years old, dad, just three, and you left, you were gone for five years, you haven't explained much in the two years you've been back." The child snapped.

"Lex, it's not important, I'm here now." He argued.

"Mom thinks it's important, but you don't think about her do you, you never think about anyone but yourself, you're selfish," She carried on fighting, the girl was like her mother in so many ways.

"I never stopped thinking about her Lex," He admitted, "Through those six long years all I could think about was you and your mom, but she won't see me, she won't even bring you to me and pick you up, I gave up, because I don't know what else I can do, this is what she wants."

"Then why does she cry all the time?" Lexie questioned, unsure of her father's motives, "Why does she cry, dad? If this is what she wants, why does she care so much? Why does she ask me how you are? Why does she get upset when I mention you? And if she wants you to leave her alone, why does she jump every time the phone rings, or when there's a knock at the door?"

"She does?" Was all he could reply, making the child sigh and walk out into his yard.

He followed her, watching as she picked up the basketball lying by the court, that court was what kept him going until Lexie's visits at weekends, he was thankful that his parents hadn't sold his childhood home when they moved, it gave him somewhere to live that was close to what meant everything to him, his wife and daughter.

"Dad?" Lexie asked as she flung the ball into the basket, "Why didn't you and mom ever divorce?"

"Lex," He sighed, "It's complicated."

"What's so complicated about it? Legally you're still together, don't you think if she didn't love you then she'd want a divorce?" Lexie continued quizzing.

Troy didn't know what to say to the girl when she asked questions like this, it didn't happen that often, but when it did he was always speechless, but Lexie had never told him so much, she'd never told him that her mom still cries about everything that had happened between them.

"Has your mom been talking about a divorce?" he asked, unsure that he wanted to know the answer.

"No, I'm just wondering, Auntie Taylor said that mom loves you, that she wants to be with you but she doesn't know how, she wants to put the past behind her, but she needs you to fight for her, why aren't you fighting for her, don't you love her? Auntie Taylor says you do, but you're not fighting, so I'm not sure," Lexie answered.

"You know I love your mom Lexie, but I can't force her to take me back, it has to be her decision," He sighed, relieved that his wife hadn't started mentioning divorce to their daughter.

"She won't be thirty forever dad," the child pointed out, have you ever thought that maybe she's not deciding because you're not fighting, I could ask her if she wants you to make more of an effort,"

"That could make things worse," He explained, "I'm not sure if she wants me talking to you about this."

They heard a knock on the front door through the house.

Troy glanced at his watch, then turned back to his daughter, "That'll be Taylor," he explained as she watched him expectantly.

"Dad, if you want her, fight for her," Lexie advised as she turned and walked to the front door.

He couldn't believe how much sense the ten-year-old had made, he knew she was right, but he had to respect her mom's wishes, and her mom wanted him to stay away from her, she had said that two years ago, when they first decided that Lexie would spend weekends with him, it had been two years since he'd seen her, two years since she's said she'd call him when she's ready, he had to let her live her life, he had to concentrate on Lexie now.

* * *

"Mom, you're unbelievable," Lexie informed her mother as she walked through the front door. 

"What have I done now?" Gabriella sighed, looking her daughter in the eyes, those deep blue eyes that were impossible to forget.

Lexie always behaved like this when she got back from her father's, Gabriella wanted to know what caused the changes in the child, but she knew Lexie would avoid her questions, and she couldn't ask anyone else, she wasn't on speaking terms with Troy, two years ago it could have been different, she'd promised him she'd call when she was ready to talk to him, she'd yet to make that call, because when push came to shove, she was an avoider as well as her daughter.

She watched as the girl ignored her question and stomped upstairs without another word.

"She's right, you know." She heard her best friend comment as she closed the front door.

"Right?" She quizzed, still looking in the direction her daughter had gone.

"You are being unbelievable," Taylor elaborated, " Just talk to him, if not for you, then for Lexie, I seem to remember you promising him you'd talk eventually, it's been two years Gab, how much time do you need?"

"I don't know," Gabriella sighed, "I don't know what to do about him, he left me, he didn't make any contact for five years, then he just showed up here, wanting to be a part of our lives again and I'm not sure, I don't know how to trust him, Tay, he says he loves me, but I'm not sure I believe it, if he loved me, if he loved us, he wouldn't have left."

"You know that's not true," Taylor pointed out, "I was talking to Lexie in the car, he told her he loves you, he told her that he's backing off because it's what you want, but that's not what you want, is it?"

"But the trust…" Gabriella started.

"Will be rebuilt in time," Taylor interrupted, "You need to think about this, I see that, so I'm gonna go, but you need to talk to him, he loves you, and I know you love him, you just need to admit it to yourself."

Gabriella watched as Taylor walked back out the front door, her mind was racing a mile a minute, she wanted to listen to her friend, but she wasn't sure she could, she couldn't set herself up for another fall, she couldn't risk doing anything that would hurt Lexie, and if this didn't work out, her daughter would get hurt.

* * *

"Bolton, your kid's playing better than you are right now, get your head in the game, there should be nothing but net when you're out there, nothing, I used to believe you when you played, but now, nothing." Coach Morgan shouted at the man that was once his star player. 

He'd been coaching the Albuquerque thunderbirds (**Yes, I did my research) **for years, and he'd never seen talent like Troy Bolton before, but the man hadn't been on his game recently, and psyching him out wasn't working.

He couldn't simply get rid of him, he was a star, everybody had off days right, it was just, Troy's off days were a regular occurrence now, he knew the only reason that the man was playing for the team was because it was close to his wife and daughter, nothing was more important to him then them, but Coach Morgan didn't know that Troy's wife was refusing to speak to him, he'd never once wondered why he'd only ever met the child on one rare occasion, Troy kept his home life pretty much under wraps.

"How do you know she's playing better?" Troy quizzed, suddenly in defensive mode.

"I don't, I'm just trying to make you work harder, set yourself targets, I know you can do better than what you're doing, your current standard isn't good enough, can't you just forget life on the court," Coach Morgan replied.

"I don't want to forget life," Troy answered, "I don't want to forget this mess I created, because the more I remember the more I hate myself, and the more I hate myself the more I push myself to make it right."

"Well can you put some of that effort into your game," Coach suggested as he turned to the rest of the team, "All of you go home, we're starting earlier tomorrow, I need effort from you all, I think an early start will do you all some good, be here tomorrow morning, seven thirty sharp."

Troy tried making a quick escape after practice, just wanting to get away from everything, just wanting to be at home, truthfully, just wanting to talk to Gabi and Lexie, but he'd have to settle with talking to one of them.

As soon as he had his cell phone out he heard the sound of pounding trainers behind him, he turned to see his daughter running up to him from behind.

"Hey, dad" She smiled, he was shocked, she'd only ever been to his work once before, and he'd brought her that time, she'd never came of her own accord, he had no idea why she had came, or how she had got here, but he was glad that she was here.

"Dad," Lexie spoke, "If you play that bad again, I'm going to have to kill you, it's so embarrassing, and mom won't be too impressed either, you're coach is right, you need to get your head in the game, I can deal with mom, I think I figured out how to get her to talk to you, but you have to trust me."

"I do trust you Lex," He told his daughter, smiling at the thought of her being cunning, she must spend quite a bit of time around Sharpay.

"Do you trust Auntie Taylor, because she's helping too, she says mom's too stubborn for her own good," Lexie grinned.

He noticed Taylor standing a few metres away from the pair of them for the first time, she walked towards them as he noticed her, "She tries making excuses as to why she hasn't called, but she does love you, don't get me wrong, Troy, I still want to kill you for what you did to her and Alexis…"

"Lexie," The girl complained, "Nobody calls me Alexis."

"Lexie," Taylor corrected herself, "as I was saying, I still want to kill you for what you did to them, but I can tell that she loves you, she's just scared, she doesn't know if she can trust you, that's why Lexie and I came up with this plan, we know you'll go along with it, and the good news is you don't have to go through all this alone, your daughter will be there the whole time, so there's no chance of Gabi yelling at you, trust us, Troy, we can sort it, and when it's sorted, I'll come and kill you, not literally, it's illegal, but I will get my revenge, but I need to sort out my friend's happiness first."

"What was with the speech, couldn't you just explain the plan to him instead of giving some insanely random announcement on how you're going to kill him, dad and I hate speeches," Lexie announced.

Troy smiled at his daughter, not knowing what she and Taylor had planned exactly, but knowing that they'd tell him what he needed to know, besides, he had to trust them now, it could be his only chance.

* * *

"Dad, stop pacing," Lexie ordered, watching her nervous father glance repeatedly at the clock as he walked continuously in a straight line in his lounge.

Troy looked at he, she seemed so uncaring, lounging around, reading magazines, she didn't find it in the least odd that it was nine fifty at night and her mom hadn't attempted to find out where she was yet.

He continued pacing, but faced his daughter again when he felt her eyes burning into him.

"She doesn't finish work till ten tonight," He was told, "I probably should have told you that."

"Where does she think you are right now?" He thought to ask.

"At home with my grandmother, she's in for a shock when she get's there and finds the house empty," Lexie grinned.

"And where does your grandmother think you are now?" He questioned.

"With Taylor," Lexie answered simply.

"I shouldn't have agreed to this," He sighed, "She'll freak out, this isn't funny Lexie, and she'll think I'm messing with her head, why did I agree to this?"

"Because it's your only chance," the child pointed out, "Besides, I'm telling her that you thought she knew I was here, remember, it was in the plan."

"I'm lying to her Lexie, I'm not ok with that, she needs the truth, and she deserves the truth, especially from me," He said more to himself than his daughter.

"You've never lied to her before have you," Lexie giggled.

Her laugher got louder as he shook his head, she continued speaking, still highly amused by her newly acquired fact, "Sharpay must have been right when she said that you were mom's slave in high school, never lied to her, that's mad, I lie to her all the time, so did Shar, of course, I never see Sharpay anymore, she and mom had a fight, about you actually, because mom found out that Sharpay told you to go wherever it was you went because that's where your dreams were."

"Sharpay meant well," He found himself defending the very person he himself had came to resent after she convinced him to leave to follow his dream, something he'd came to regret he'd ever done, "She just doesn't know when to mind her own business."

"So I've heard," Lexie snapped, alerting her father to the fact that she knew everything that Sharpay had done, "Mom told me everything, about your high school, and that country club place, that was after we stopped talking to Sharpay though, I don't see why mom was friends with her in the first place, after everything she did to you, why would you listen to her anyway? I need to know the facts, dad, I need to know if you're good enough for mom."

Troy smiled at his daughter's protectiveness over her mother, but seeing as for five years Gabriella was all Lexie had, he wasn't surprised by it.

They sat in silence until the sound of loud banging on the door startled them.

Slowly, Troy stood up, walking towards the door.

"Dad," Lexie pushed, managing to sound annoyed even though it was clear that she was as tense as he was.

He opened the door, preparing for the fury he knew he was about to face; he was just hoping that Taylor was right when she said the yelling would stop if Lexie stayed.

"WHAT THE HELL, TROY?" She shouted as soon as the door was open, she pushed past me into the house, "WE HAD AN ARRANGEMENT, AND TONIGHT I GET HOME FROM WORK TO HAVE NO IDEA WHERE MY KID IS!"

"Cool it mom, he thought you knew I was here," Lexie tried, hoping her father would still go along with the original plan.

Gabriella looked over at the ten-year-old; the child was staring at her with an almost hostile indifference in her eyes.

"She's lying," Troy admitted, "She told me you didn't know."

"Why did you say that? You really are an idiot, I told you not to say that," Lexie complained.

"And I told you I can't lie," He told his daughter.

"Some things need to be lied about," Lexie decided in argument.

"Not this," Troy excused, "Why am I arguing with you anyway?"

"BECAUSE YOU'RE A MORON," Lexie yelled.

"Alexis," Both parents warned in unison.

Much to her parent's confusion, Lexie started laughing, they glanced at eachother, and then turned back to the girl quickly when their eyes met.

"What's so funny?" Gabriella was the first to speak.

"I don't know if you realised," Lexie began, "but you guys just agreed on something, and you said it at the same time, I think I know what Auntie Taylor meant when she told me you were like one in high school."

"Lexie, go and wait in the car," Gabriella ordered, not willing to take a walk down memory lane.

"You always do that," Lexie exclaimed, "You always try and push me out of things, I'm ten mom, I'm not stupid, you can't hide things from me forever, I won't let you, I don't want to live my whole life having to rely on Auntie Taylor for the truth."

Gabriella sighed, this conversation would be hard enough, she didn't need her ten-year-old making it harder, but the girl was determined.

"Gab?" She heard Troy ask, and turned to face him fully for the first time in two years.

"Don't," She demanded, "don't even try to explain why Lexie was here when she should have been with my mother, just don't."

"Why not?" He asked softly, "I thought you'd want to know."

"I already know," She snapped, "I figured it out after a spoke to Taylor, so you thought you'd get me to come here, get me to face you by dragging me over here to get her, I told you I'd call when I was ready…"

"But you didn't," He cut her off, shocking himself aswell as her, "You said you would but you didn't."

"I'm not ready," She tried, looking away, wanting to face anything but him.

"That's not what you told Taylor," She heard him point out; she felt a mild anger towards her friend rise inside her, why would she tell him that?

"I never told her that I was ready," She told him truthfully, "If I was ready I would have called."

"No you wouldn't," He sighed, reminding her just how well he knew her, "You wouldn't because you avoid everything you're scared of, and I know you're scared, you're scared that I'll hurt you again, but I won't, I know you don't believe it but I'm not that stupid."

He was gazing right into her eyes, and she didn't know what to do, she couldn't bring herself to look away, she knew he was right, she was an avoider, she had avoided him, but she wasn't sure she was ready to deal with him, she'd had two years to get used to him being back, and she still wasn't sure.

They continued just staring at eachother, forgetting their daughter was in the room, lost in each other's eyes, but she couldn't feel the trust, the love was there, she was sure of that, but there was no trust, and that was the one thing she was longing for.

"Troy, I…" She started.

**That's the end of the story, I know, a weird place to leave it, but I want you to choose your own ending, use your imagination and continue it in your own minds. REVIEW**


	4. Perfect Christmas

**It was either update Impossible Perfection or write another oneshot, I went with the oneshot because it's officially Christmas eve in England and it still doesn't feel like Christmas to me, I need to write something Christmassy to get into the spirit, I can hardly skip ahead like 8 months to Christmas in Impossible Perfection, so I settled on a Christmas oneshot, which isn't one that is co-written.**

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**Disclaimer: ****I still do not own High school Musical ******** I do technically still own the Christmas presents I got for my sister because she hasn't opened them yet, (I got her five presents, I know, I'm an awesome sister), I won't own them when she opens them tomorrow morning, which will be in just over twenty-four hours because it's like 3.13am on the twenty-fourth right now. I also don't own the song Santa's reindeer ride by Amy Grant.**

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"Mami said we could only open one present before she got up Ethan," Emily reprimanded her twin brother, "You'll make her upset, and then daddy'll get mad because he doesn't like mami being upset." 

"Shushy Emi," Ethan answered his sister, "she won't be upset if she not know I open two."

"She knows how many there are, dooface," Emily replied, "Santa clause told her because he knew you'd be bad and try and open two."

"No he didn't," Ethan shot back, "Mami was asleep when Santa Clause came, so he couldn't have told her."

"Daddy told me that Santa asks all the Mami's and daddies in the world what their children want for Christmas, so mami would have told him then," His sister told him self-righteously.

"You're just being stupid Emi," Ethan stated, glancing up at his sister as he picked up a present, still carrying his new basketball under his left arm.

"I'm not, I'm going to tell Mami if you open that one," Emily informed him.

"Tell me what?" Their mother yawned from the foot of the stairs.

"Ethan was going to open another present Mami, and you said he couldn't, I was telling him no but he wouldn't listen, he's a bad boy Mami, you should take all his presents away," Emily decided.

"She's a liar," Ethan tried, "I didn't mami."

Gabriella smiled at her two children, their petty squabbles never stopped, especially not at Christmas, if anything they were worse in the festive season, but she wouldn't swap it for anything.

"Mami?" She heard her son ask, "Can we open presents now?"

"Wait for daddy, ok?" Gabriella asked the pair.

She watched as huge grins appeared on the faces of both children and followed them as they clambered upstairs.

Leaning on the doorframe as they ran into her room she watched as they started jumping on the bed chanting, "Wake up daddy, wake up daddy," at the top of their voices.

"Later," She heard her husband mumble, trying to swat the kids off.

"But Daddy, it's Christmas," Emily complained as Ethan continued the chant.

"Five minutes," He groggily requested, but was answered by more persistent jumping.

Gabriella giggled from the doorway, causing him to open his eyes and look up at her.

"You put them up to this, didn't you?" he quizzed.

"I just told them they had to wait until you got up to open more presents, coming up here to get you up was their idea, angelic little geniuses aren't they," She smiled in reply.

"I would rather you woke me up," He pointed out slyly.

She could feel herself blushing even though she knew the two five-year-olds wouldn't have understood their father's comment.

"Up now daddy," Ethan ordered, jumping off the bed and pulling on his father's arm.

"Ok, ok," He relented as the children ran past their mother and back downstairs.

"They're really excited," She commented.

"I know what you're doing," He grinned, "You're trying to make small talk so you can watch me get dressed."

She started giggling again, thinking of how typical it was for him to make a comment like that, she'd grown so used to it she took it for granted.

"That's what I want you to think, it's actually part of my plan to tease you, because today is about the kids, you're gonna have to wait." She answered.

"So you're being cruel," He pointed out, "You're not living up to what the ring has inscribed on it."

She smiled again, thinking of her engagement ring, the word _Angel _was inscribed on the inside, she realised she hadn't thought about it in a long time, she'd grown so used to the ring being there over the past seven years it was just a norm to her. The wedding band that rested on the same finger, near to it, was also normal, she hadn't really thought about how strange her hand would feel if they weren't there, nor did she want to, especially not at Christmas.

"What you thinking?" Her husband asked, suddenly curious.

"About how weird my hand would feel without the rings," She told him truthfully, knowing she really could tell him anything without fear of being judged or laughed at.

"You don't need to think about that," He stated, "Those rings are never leaving your finger, they're there for good, now, come on, we should go down before the twins start trashing the house through impatience."

She smiled as she nodded, and turned to walk back through the door, feeling him grab her hand.

"YAY," Emily and Ethan shouted in unison as their parents appeared.

"Presents now?" The boy asked.

Both parents nodded and the children attacked the piles of presents under and around the tree.

"I love it when they're like this," Troy commented, "It reminds me of being a kid."

"You still are a kid," Gabriella answered, "Go and join them, you know you want to."

"Only if you come," He smiled.

She nodded in agreement as they walked down the remaining few steps and sat with their children around the tree.

"Mami, I love it," Emily exclaimed, holding up the giant bear that had been given to her, "It was from Uncle Chad, Mami tell him I love it."

"You can tell him when he comes over later," Gabriella told the girl as Troy whispered, "Figures he'd give her a bear, it matches his hair."

"Why are you rhyming?" She whispered back.

He laughed, clearly having not noticed that he had rhymed before she pointed it out to him.

"Mami, look," Emily exclaimed again, holding up a denim skirt with glittery snowflakes lining the hem, with a matching pale blue t-shirt with a glitter-covered snowflake on the front of it, "It has a hair band too!"

"Sharpay," Troy and Gabriella said in unison, knowing that she was the only possible suspect to have insisted on having so much glitter.

"Yeah," Emily exclaimed in disbelief, not understanding how her parents knew that.

"What's that Ethan?" Troy asked his son as he caught the boy staring at a box in his hand.

"A super splashy gun!" The boy exclaimed as his parents shot eachother knowing looks; Ethan had been pestering them for a water gun for the past six months.

"Who was it from?" Gabriella quizzed, remembering what she'd written on the label.

Ethan searched the wrapping paper that was scattered around him for a few seconds before picking up the small bit of card.

"It's from Santa!" He exclaimed in excitement, "Emi, it from Santa."

His sister squealed, sharing his excitement, to the children this was proof that Santa existed, it was all they needed as reassurance that the patron saint of children was actually real.

"Do you remember the Santa from the store?" Ethan quizzed his sister.

"Yeah, he gave me colouring pens," Emily answered, "Mami told me to always put the lids back on them when I'm done, isn't that right mami?"

"That's right," Gabriella agreed, smiling at the atmosphere in the room.

"I think that was the real Santa, and that Billy Morgan is a big fat liar," Ethan decided, "Did you know that Billy said that Santa didn't exist, Mami?"

"Billy's a silly boy," I smiled, "Who'd give him the presents if there was no Santa?"

"He says it's his mommy and daddy," Emily rolled her eyes, "But that's silly, because all the mommies and daddies work, and they can't make toys and the elves can, because the elves are cleverer."

"Hey," Troy complained, "I'm smarter than all the elves in the world."

"And I'm smarterer than you I am daddy," Emily giggled.

"Of course you are," he agreed, still smiling at her.

"Santa's the smarterest," Ethan cut in, deciding he wanted to be a part of the conversation.

"Yeah," Emily exclaimed, "because he can get down the chimney, I can't daddy, and mami can't, and you and Ethan can't, so Santa's smarterer than all of us."

Gabriella smiled at the sight of her husband and children so engrossed in a conversation about how smart Santa was, it wasn't a sight anyone would see every day, and just knowing that believing in Santa was a sign showing how innocent the children really were refreshed her, after all, they wouldn't be that way forever, so enjoying the now was as much a priority as preparing for the future, and keeping Christmas spirit alive was an incredibly important part of the present.

Watching her children gleefully opening presents gave her an incredible sense of joy and pride, she didn't know if it was possible for her to be happier, and knowing that one day her children would get to feel this exact same feeling made it all the better, she knew that even when the twins no longer believed in Santa Clause she had to make sure they still knew that Christmas spirit was important, that they shouldn't deny it's there just because there's no man in a red suit, because Christmas can always and should always be enjoyed by many people, there weren't any other times like it in the year, this time of pure joy that could be shared by all people, sure birthdays were a close second but they didn't quite add up to Christmas, Christmas was near world-wide, birthdays were personal, so she couldn't help but hope that all Christmases would be like this, a perfect haven or happiness.

"Mami, sing," Emily insisted, snapping her out of her thoughts.

She smiled as she answered her daughter's request, "What shall I sing?"

"REINDEER," the twins shouted in unison.

She nodded, still smiling as she started singing.

_We've got our little fingers working hard  
On the trains and dolls and cars  
Hurrying 'cuz Santa's a-waitin' soldiers marchin' out the door  
Carryin' the toys galore for Santa's reindeer ride _

This is more than just another reindeer ride not a practice run in July 

_  
We've got to load up all the festive gear peace and hope and yuletide cheer  
For Santa's reindeer ride_

She smiled as Emily tried joining in, her small voice only audible on certain words.

There is so little time to make the toys for the little girls and boys  
Hurry 'cause the big days coming there's no time to go to bed  
Got to pack and load the sled for Santa's reindeer ride

Its the time that we all work for every year  
Make sure Rudolph and the gifts are here

We've got to load up all the festive gear peace and hope and yuletide cheer  
For Santa's reindeer ride  
We've got to load up all the festive gear peace and hope and yuletide cheer  
For Santa's reindeer ride

Polish the runners shine Rudolph's nose tighten the harness brush off the snow  
We love to sing our little working songs wish that we could tag along just to see the children's faces

Tonight the world is filled with joy  
_Deeper than the games and toys  
Its time to load up the sleigh  
Tonight the world is filled with joy  
Deeper than the games and toys  
Its time to load up the sleigh  
(its time to load up the ) Sleigh for Santa's reindeer ride_

She finished the song, her daughter's voice also clear through the last line.

"That good," Ethan decided, "Sing again?"

"Later," Gabriella promised, "For now, finish opening your presents."

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**I know it's kinda short, but it's also sweet, I really worked hard on the kids in this, I didn't want them to be too sweet, there is such a thing, I mean like so sweet you want to vomit, Emily is kind of based on my sister, her behaviour is the sort of thing my sister can do, the fight at the beginning was actually similar to one my sister and I had last Christmas, I was fourteen, she was seven, I was going to open another present, she wouldn't let me.**

**Anyways, this will be the last chapter of any story I put up until maybe boxing day, although I'm not promising anything then, I'll probably have something up then unless I'm forced to go to my uncles for the usual boxing day party, which we didn't have last year and I've heard nothing about this year, so Merry Christmas and a happy new year to everyone who reads all of my stories (Although in Kerry's case it's a hyper new year), have fun, don't get too drunk, save that for new years, anyways, like I said, it's 3.15am on the 24****th**** of December 2007 (gotta love that date)****, I'm going to go watch Greys Anatomy on a low volume, because they have a Christmas episode from season two, (It's called **_Grandma got run over by a reindeer_**, legendary title, it's also a song)**

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**Ok, so instead of annoying you with my continuous ranting which would probably end up longer than the actual story, I'm going to go and watch that, Watch your inbox for those of you that have Impossible Perfection on alerts (don't you find it weird that you get an alert when you add chapters to your own stories saying you've added a chapter, I'm like, yeah I do know that I kinda did add it.), moving on, Impossible perfection next chapter 26****th**** or 27****th**** of December 2007.**

**Wow, that's a long rant, going to go watch greys. **

**Have an awesome Christmas and a great new year, even though I know I already said that.**

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**Oh yeah, REVIEW!! **


	5. Escaping death

**I swear, I should be banned from thinking, when I do I come up with ideas like this.**

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**Ok, I should probably go into more detail about the story before I start complaining about my thinking.**

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**Name: Escaping death**

**Summary: The Evans twins always thought they'd have everything, they never believed that anything bad would happen to them, can one freak accident and a petrifying disappearance change their opinions of life? A HSM/Greys Anatomy crossover set during the ferry incident in mid season three of Greys Anatomy. **

**Category: Suspense**

**Extra information: Not co-written, no pairings, just drama, the idea of the little sister was actually what started the idea in my head, if you watch Greys Anatomy you'll hopefully already know why. Seems more Greys Anatomy than HSM, but starts and ends HSM.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical or Greys Anatomy; no matter how much I wish I did.**

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"Ryan, why did we have to come to Seattle?" Sharpay once again quizzed her brother.

"Dad had a business trip, he thought we could use the vacation," He gave the same reply as he had the previous times she had asked.

"Some vacation," Sharpay muttered, looking out onto the bleak horizon as Lola commented, "he already told you that, dooface,"

At seven, Lola was ten years younger than her elder siblings, but having a near identical personality to her sister had made life somewhat difficult, their similar attitudes caused constant competition between the girls, Lola, of course, didn't understand why she and her sister didn't get along, the younger girl used her persuasive talents for good, she relied on her brother for company while at home or on a family vacation, she got along well with him, they both longed for familial bliss, Ryan was willing to give Lola whatever she wanted, he didn't want her to be like Sharpay when she was older, but she had the kind of face that you couldn't say no to, both Evan's sisters were spoilt beyond belief, but only one had the courage to enforce her will. The younger Evans sister was shy, not only around strangers, but extended family, and, in turn, family friends, that, however, didn't extend to her sister, so the pair were always a loggerheads.

"Oh go play with your dolls Lolly pop," Sharpay snapped, glaring at the girl who had dared to talkback to her.

"I don't have dolls, dooface," the child retorted, dooface had seemed to become one of her favourite words at the time, "and we're on a ferry, nobody plays dolls on boats."

Her sibling's friends were watching on in amusement at the sisterly interaction.

"God, Lola, you have so much to learn, as members of the Evans family, we can do whatever the hell we want to do wherever we want." Sharpay told her in a demanding tone that would intimidate anyone else.

"No we can't Sharpay," Lola truthfully answered, refusing to succumb to her sister's manipulating ways, " my teacher told me, that it's rude to act like nobody else is important."

"Your teacher, little sis," Sharpay started, "is a moron."

"DADDY!!!" Lola shouted, "daddy she said it again."

"Lola, don't shout," Ryan told the younger child, "we're not the only people here, remember, we should be setting an example for Sharpay."

Lola nodded, sitting down on the bench beside him, Sharpay had refused to sit down as soon as she had become aware that the benches on the ferry had not been disinfected. Both Ryan and Lola found her attitude laughable.

Ryan had stepped in when Lola shouted, he didn't want his little sister to become aware that their parents had left them to tour the ferry nearly an hour ago, the girl had been so distracted with correcting her sister, she hadn't noticed them leaving.

"I hate boats," Sharpay muttered to her siblings as she looked over the railings into the murky water.

"It's a ferry," both of them corrected her in unison, along with the rest of the small group they were part of.

Lola had always been smarter than both of her siblings; in more than one way she was the odd one out of the three, she corrected the pair of them on a regular basis, a fact that her sister seemed to resent her for.

The three were too busy arguing with eachother to notice the first signs that something was wrong, they were first alerted by the loud, gut-crunching smash that caused them all to metaphorically jump out of their skins.

Ryan instinctively picked up his younger sister, using his free arm to grab his twin; he was the only one that really understood that if anything was wrong, they had to stay together.

He noticed his friends also grab hold of eachother.

"What the hell was that?" Sharpay asked no one in particular as the screech of metal scraping metal filled the air, making her scream at the top of her lungs.

No answer came from Ryan or Lola, the girl had gone ghostly white in shock, their brother was just intent of getting them somewhere safe in one piece.

"We have to move," he demanded, taking control, "we have to move fast."

"In these heels?" Sharpay complained, suddenly not as concerned with her safety.

"Sharpay, this isn't some kind of joke, move," Ryan ordered, dragging her along as he started to run amidst the screams and shouts of other ferry passengers.

The group followed the rest of the passengers, heading in the direction of the dock; they figured that their safest bet was to get off of the ferry.

"RY, WHERE'S LOLA?" Sharpay screamed after a few minutes, causing the other's to look around.

He looked to his arm in shock, he hadn't realised she wasn't there; he knew that the only explanation was that he'd dropped her.

The group both looked back, desperately searching for any glimpse of the little girl, while, at the same time, knowing it was near hopeless, there were to many running people for them to stand any chance of spotting her.

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Lola Evans wandered aimlessly around the dock, her designer jeans half-soaked, she hadn't spoken since she had fallen from her brother's grip over half an hour ago, her brother and sister had continued going on without her, she had figured that the safest option, under the circumstances, was to follow in the direction they were headed, but she couldn't find them anywhere, she was lost and scared, she couldn't find anyone she knew, there were people running around everywhere. People in uniform were scattered all over the place, some wearing uniforms she recognised as those of doctors and firemen, others that were completely new to her.

A screaming, hysterical woman lay on a stretcher nearby, her face streaked with blood. The woman with her was trying to calm her down semi-successfully, Lola decided to watch, after all, the woman was wearing a uniform, she had to be safe.

"Ok, take a deep breath for me. Ok, you're gonna be ok. You're injuries are minor. An EMT is gonna come and take you to the hospital, ok?" The woman was softly speaking.

Lola watched, half in awe, the injured woman seemed to have calmed down a bit. She noticed the other woman, whom she had figured was a doctor, turn around, glancing around the scene, probably looking for another person that needed help. She noticed the woman's eyes move to her, gazing intently at her for a few seconds.

"Is this your mommy?" She was asked as the woman gestured to the person she had just been helping.

Lola shook her head, not wanting to speak.

"Who are you with? Ok, I want you to stay right here, ok?" The woman kept questioning.

Lola grabbed onto her arm, not wanting to be left alone.

"Stay right here," The woman tried again, looking down at her, "Did you wet your pants? That's ok. It happens sometimes."

Lola clung to the woman tighter as a man came past shouting "COMING THROUGH,"

"It's ok," the woman tried reassuring, "you stay right here, I'll come back, I promise."

Lola was never one to believe people that made promises, in her seven years she'd found out that everyone broke promises, as the woman began to move away, she followed close behind her, she needed the feeling of safety, at least until she found her brother, he'd be able to look after her then.

The woman was hard to follow; she didn't walk in straight lines like most people, although with everything that littered the floor that was hardly an option here. She seemed to have no objections to Lola following her, infact, if anything; she kept checking that the child was still around.

Every now and then she stopped, either to ask or answer any onlookers questions in the only way she could, Lola noticed that the woman was vague in her answers, she never gave too much away, some stops were to help other injured people, one's that were crying out for help or just suffering silently.

Lola had never seen such carnage before, and she hated not knowing what had caused it, she hated not having her brother there to comfort her, her sister there to fight with, she missed home, the kind of normalcy she'd lived less than an hour before.

The woman wove in and out of potential obstacles as she continued moving from patient to patient, Lola following close behind.

"Have you seen your mommy yet?" the woman asked, it was the first time she'd spoken since they'd left the place where they had met.

Lola shook her head in response, somewhere in her mind, she'd decided that if she never did find her family, she wanted this woman to be her new mom, in a way, she already knew her, she already trusted her, she wasn't a stranger any more, and she was safe, she was helping people, so she must be.

"Derek," She heard the woman state, and looked up to see a man turn to her.

"Meredith, hey," he greeted, "You got a free hand? Here, hold this bandage for me. You all right?"

"Yeah," the woman, Meredith, answered, "it's just… a lot."

"You wanna get married? And you haven't told me and I haven't asked? And we have a problem?" Derek was rambling, Lola had always found it funny when people rambled, but right now, she didn't.

"What?" Meredith choked, "No, I don't want to get married. You want to get married?"

"No," Derek admitted, "Good. So, if that's not it, what is it?"

"It isn't anything," Meredith claimed, "Are you good? Cos I gotta get this kid to triage."

"Yeah, ok, let's go," Derek answered, watching Lola with a concerned look on his face, "Is she all right?"

"Yeah, she's good," Meredith, answered, " She's just lost,"

There was a call from somewhere to Lola's right and the man began to walk away, smiling at her as an attempt of reassurance as he did.

Meredith took Lola's hand and began leading her somewhere, usually Lola wouldn't go anywhere without knowing exactly where she was going, but right now, she was too scared to be alone, she could see Ryan now, but he was too far away for her to attempt to reach, and she didn't want to distract the woman that was being so kind for her, so she kept quiet and continued walking.

"Ok, we need to find a grown-up," Meredith told her, "another grown-up to help you find your mom."

Lola didn't answer, just looked at a man that was crawling out of the water, badly injured.

Meredith seemed to have noticed too.

"Hey, I need you to take this little girl to the triage tents," She told a passing man.

"I gotta get back to my unit," this new man protested.

"No," Meredith demanded, then acquired a softer tone, "I need you to take this little girl to the triage tents for me, please."

Meredith bent down to Lola's level, smiling sweetly at her, trying to convince her that everything was fine, " You're gonna be ok. You're gonna be fine. I promise." She looked back up to the man and muttered "Fine," before walking away to tend to the man from the water.

The new man started to lead Lola away, but stopped as someone called, "Stay right here," he told her as he made his way over to the voice that had called him.

Lola was fed up of being told what to do, she didn't like this new man either, she wanted Ryan and Sharpay, but she didn't know where they were, the next best thing was the woman, Meredith, and she could see her, so that's where she decided to go.

As soon as Lola reaches Meredith, she taps her on the shoulder.

Meredith's head shoot's round, she's clearly startled, "Don't look," she ordered, "Turn around, I need you to be brave for me. Just stand right there and don't move, and don't look."

Lola didn't need telling twice, she didn't want to see the blood this man was covered in, she decided to look for her parents and siblings, or anyone she knew, she was sure she had heard her brother mention that his friends were also coming to Seattle with them, maybe they'd be there, one of them could take her to Ryan.

* * *

"Did you find your sister?" A concerned Taylor asked Ryan.

"No," He sighed in desperation, putting his head in his hands, "Where could she be? How could I drop her? How could I be so stupid?"

"There's no point blaming yourself," Taylor pointed out, "Look, Gabi, Chad, Troy and Sharpay are all looking for her, they'll find her Ry, you have to believe that."

"That still doesn't change the fact that I lost her," Ryan argued, "My little sister, she was counting on me, my parents trusted me to look after her."

"Beating yourself up over this won't do anyone any good," Taylor explained, looking up to see Chad walking towards them. "Any luck?"

He shook his head, "one guy said something about a kid following a doctor around, but Lola wouldn't follow strangers, I figured it's not her."

"Did you check?" She quizzed impatiently, already knowing that he probably didn't.

"No," he proved her right, "if it was her with this doctor, then she'd be fine, right? The person's a doctor, doctor's are safe."

"Not always," Taylor snapped, knowing how freaked out Ryan must be right now, her boyfriend's lack of interest wasn't going to help anyone.

"Ryan," the voice of his mother was heard by the three of them, "Ryan, where are your sisters?"

For once in her life, his mom sounded scared, she was looking frantically around the scene, trying to spot her daughters.

"Don't panic," Taylor started, trying to calm the woman down, "Somewhere in the chaos, we lost Lola, Sharpay, Gabi and Troy are looking for her, they're gonna be ok."

Ryan sent his friend a weak smile of thanks for blaming more than just him for the disappearance of the younger Evans sister, if she had said he had lost her, his parents would have been a whole lot harder on him.

"You lost my baby?" Mrs Evans stuttered, "And you sent your sister to find her?"

"Ryan was in no state to look himself," Taylor continued, "Sharpay volunteered,"

"Where are the girls?" Mr. Evans asked as he came up behind his wife.

"He lost her, he lost Lola," came the sobs of Ryan's mother, "he lost her, how could he just lose her?"

"Where, exactly, did you last see her?" Mr. Evans asked his son, going straight into father mode.

"When we were trying to get off the ferry, I dropped her," Ryan muttered.

His dad nodded as he ran off, clearly also going to join the search for his daughter.

* * *

Lola watches the calm waters, debris drifting by every now and then, she didn't know what to do, the man had just pushed Meredith into the water, she didn't think it had been his intention, it was just a twist of fate.

She turned as she heard footsteps behind her and faced the man from earlier; the one Meredith had been talking to, what was his name again?

"Hi," he tried smiling, though he was clearly worried, "You ok? Did a doctor bring you here? Huh, Meredith? Meredith ok?"

Lola shook her head, deciding not to lie to him and tell him the woman was ok.

He looked her in the eye, desperation now evident in his own orbs, "It's ok. Just think. Where is she? Which way did she go? It's ok. Take your time. Take all the time you need, you're doing great, what is it?"

Lola noted that he was rambling again as she pointed to a Red Cross sign and begins walking towards it.

"Good," the man tells her as Lola stops and continues gazing out into the water, "Ok, use your words. Where exactly is Meredith?"

She points towards the water, noticing the man follow her gesture, noticing the worry in his eyes turn to fear.

She watches as he runs to dive into the water, thinking how it seemed stupid to her that he was going in after a woman even though he could kill himself in the process.

She waited for a few minutes, watching the still waters, hoping that the man would reappear.

"Hey, Kid!" shouted yet another man from behind her, "Kid! You ok? You need to come with me. Kid?"

Lola was unresponsive as the man picked her up, even as he carried her away she continued to watch the waters.

The man reappeared just before she lost sight of the docks, carrying Meredith in his arms.

She was carried around the corner, not really concentrating on the journey as they stopped inside a tent

"She was by the docks, no adult, no nothing, she won't even speak," the man that was carrying her spoke to someone else.

"Hey honey," came a female voice, Lola looked at her, it wasn't Meredith, she didn't like this new woman, "can you tell me your name?"

She continued staring at the woman, not answering, not responding, even as the man put her on the floor and took a picture of her, "I'm gonna go look around, see if anyone claims her."

The woman nodded as he walked off.

"My name's Susan," she explained, "But you can call me sue, and I only let special people…."

"LOLA," shouted a voice from outside the tent, she turned to see her sister at the entrance to the tent, trying to get in but being prevented, she was arguing, "BUT THAT'S MY SISTER, GIVE ME MY SISTER,"

Lola ran away from the woman, towards her sister, but her hand was grabbed before she got the chance.

"Don't run sweetie, it's not safe out there," Susan tried telling her, clearly having not noticed the almost hysterically distraught teenager attempting to get in the tent.

"Sister," Lola uttered the one word as she pointed to Sharpay.

"She's your sister?" Susan asked for confirmation as she turned to face the teen.

Lola nodded to confirm her words, not understanding why she had to.

"Let the girl through," Susan called to the man blocking Sharpay's path, "the kid says it's her sister."

"Of course she does," Sharpay, snapped as she finally got past, "I am her sister,"

She grabbed hold of Lola, hugging her tightly, "I'll never let you out of my sight again, I swear."

Lola snuggled into her sister's embrace, feeling safer than she had since she had lost sight of them earlier in the day.

"I'm taking her back to our parents," Sharpay announced, trying to maintain her tough act, "Mother and Daddy have been worried."

"I can't just let you take her, I'm afraid," Susan tried as Lola repeated the word, "Sister," aloud, not understanding why this woman still needed convincing.

"SHE'S MY SISTER," Sharpay screamed, "YOU CAN'T STOP ME FROM TAKING MY OWN SISTER TO OUR PARENTS,"

Susan nodded, backing off against her own will, she'd never been scared of anyone before, but this girl had some bite.

Sharpay led Lola out of the tent, away from the strange woman and other people that she didn't know.

"Where mommy and daddy and Ryan?" Lola quizzed, suddenly not wanting to act so smart around her sister.

"We're going to them now Lolly pop," Sharpay promised as she picked her sister up, not wanting to risk her wandering off again.

* * *

"No luck," Gabriella sighed as she sat down next to Taylor, "I looked everywhere I thought possible."

"You tried," Troy, pointed out, "I didn't see her either,"

"Face it guys," Ryan spoke up, "I've screwed up big this time, we won't find her."

"You never know, Ryan," Taylor started, "Sharpay isn't back yet,"

"Lola wouldn't go to Shar, they practically hate eachother," Ryan sighed, clearly resigned.

"You don't know that," Gabriella tried, "Lola will probably be scared, she'd go to the first person she knows."

"There's Sharpay," Chad announced, everyone looked up, including Mrs. Evans.

"I don't see Lola," Ryan told the group, "I told you she wouldn't…"

The figure of his seven-year-old sister was now visible in his sister's arms, being carried towards them quickly.

Mrs. Evans grabbed her youngest child off of Sharpay as soon as they reached them.

"Mommy, I'm ok," Lola insisted, before examining the group, "Where's daddy?"

"He went to look for you," Ryan answered her question, placing his hand on her grubby face to reassure himself that she was actually there.

"I'll call him," Sharpay decided as she got out her cell, "Isn't it great that one of us is always prepared."

Sharpay grinned and turned, walking a few metres away.

"What happened to you, Lolly?" Mrs. Evans asked, "You're filthy, did you wet yourself?"

Lola didn't answer, just snuggled further into her mother's arms, she knew that the worst of the pain was over.

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**wow, that has got to be the longest thing i have ever written.**

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**I know that the girl in the actual Greys Anatomy episode wasn't reunited with her mother at the scene, it just worked in this oneshot.**

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**I know it mainly focuses on Lola and Greys Anatomy, but i wanted to see how well i could blend High School Musical with the show.**

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**Personally i think i've made a huge mess of this, but i guess that's not up to me, REVIEW!!**


	6. When sisters play cupid

**New oneshot time, partly because i have realised that i haven't put up a new oneshot in all of nineteen days, but mainly because I'm working on something new, and I don't really want my other stories to affect that, but I wanted to tell you about this new thing, but people who put up separate authors notes with no chapter annoy me, and I didn't want to be one of those people, so I decided to put it up in a oneshot.**

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**This oneshot is short, bearing in mind i literally just wrote it, because of the message and wanting to get a oneshot up quuckly due to my lack of oneshots recently, as it's literally just been typed, it is clearly not co-written.**

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**Funnily enough, the idea is also at the moment a one shot, it depends how I feel when I finish writing it, I may continue.**

**It's a fanfic for the TV show, **_**The Tribe, **_**which is actually on this site under Tribe, even if you don't watch the show the oneshot (maybe story) should be easy to follow, so I decided to tell you about it to give you the chance to decided whether you want to read it or not when it's up.**

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**Disclaimer: ****I do not own High School Musical, and funnily enough, I do not own the tribe, however, I do own Liliana Bolton.**

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Liliana Bolton had spent most of her life studying her older brother, she looked up to him, he was her hero, the one that was always there no matter what, through thick and thin, the one she trusted with every secret, he was both her protector and her protectee, the one that kept her sane through the darkest of times, but that didn't mean she couldn't tell him when he was wrong, did it? 

She'd been standing in his doorway for roughly ten minutes before he noticed her, watching the confusion in his face change to anger, to worry, even fear, before returning to confusion, she knew what all this emotion was about, she also knew that there was very little she could do about it, but she'd have to do what she could, just like he'd do for her.

"Lil?" he questioned as he spotted her, "we'll talk later ok, promise,"

"We don't talk anymore," she answered, entering the room, "not since everything last week, this isn't about me and my problems, Troy, this is about you and yours, you always help me, so let me help you, let me return the favour,"

"There's nothing you can do," he sighed, resigned, "don't you think if there was I would have asked already? She hates me, Lil."

"Well you did pretty much tell her that basketball is more important than her," Liliana pointed out, "besides, she doesn't hate you,"

"How do you know?" he quizzed, watching her curiously.

"She loved you last week, she can't just turn those feelings off, she still loves you now, you know she does, so why are you here, why aren't you there, talking to her, trying to make things right?" she rushed in explanation.

"I've tried talking to her," he complained, "she doesn't want to know, every time I try to talk to her at school, she just walks away,"

"Then go to her house," I exclaimed, "make her talk to you, if she means that much to you, just go for it, make her let you explain,"

"WHAT'S TO EXPLAIN?" he shouted, knowing that his raised voice would have no affect on his fourteen year old sister at all, " I'VE LOST HER, I TOLD HER THAT BASKETBALL WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAN HER BECAUSE IT AFFECTED MY FUTURE, BUT I WAS WRONG, NOTHING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN HER,"

"THEN TELL HER THAT," Liliana yelled back, "JUST QUIT MOPING AROUND FEELING SORRY FOR YOURSELF, IT'S SICKENING!"

He shook his head, sighing, "It isn't that easy,"

"Yes it is," Liliana, claimed, her voice back to its usual state, "go to her, tell her how you feel,"

"She won't talk to me," he excused, "if I go to her house she won't let me in, she won't let me near her,"

"You can talk her round," she claimed, "if you can talk mom round when you come in late, you can handle her,"

"Why do you care so much, Lil?" he asked, noticing she had begun to back out of the room.

"You're my brother, and whether I like it or not I'm stuck with you, so I may as well make my life easier and help you out every once in a while," She replied, "I have somewhere to be right now though, so, Seeya,"

He shook his head and sighed at her strange behaviour, putting it down to her being a teenage girl as he stared back up at the ceiling, what his sister had told him to do wouldn't be easy, but it had to be done.

LILIANA walked slowly towards her destination, she couldn't trust that her brother would come, and she'd always been a strong believer in the saying, 'if you want something done properly, do it yourself,'

Slowly she crept through a gate and into the back yard of the house she knew was occupied by her brother's currently ex-girlfriend and her mother.

Smiling to herself as she saw the tree that led onto the older girl's balcony, she'd always been good at climbing, but the skill had never come in useful until now, but if she didn't have it, she'd of had no chance of completing her mission.

Pulling herself up branch-by-branch she finally climbed over the railings, watching the girl through the open curtains of the glass doors.

The girl inside had obviously been crying, her eyes were still red, and tissue's littered the floor, hopefully she could make it all right.

She knocked lightly, noticing the girl stir, but not turn around from her position, causing her to knock again, a little louder this time.

The girl whipped her head round, sighing when she saw her as she got up to open the door.

"Lily, what are you doing here?" she questioned, repeatedly wiping her eyes as if to try and hide her tears,

"I don't have long," Liliana told her, "I promised mom I'd be back by eight, because of dark, but we need to talk."

"Why?" the other girl questioned.

"Because he misses you," Liliana answered, pushing past her and into the room and sitting on the bed " Gab, he loves you whether you like it or not, sooner or later you have to accept that,"

"He doesn't love me," Gabriella replied as she faced the younger teen that had suddenly invaded her room insisting that they talk, "if he did he wouldn't have said what he did, he wouldn't have ever thought that,"

"Do you really believe that?" Liliana questioned, "or is that just what you keep telling yourself? Because I know for a fact that he does, you think you're the only one hurting? This is killing him, he needs you just as much as you need him, he may have said what he did, but to me he said the opposite, he said that nothing is more important than you, and that he was an idiot to ever say it,"

"Then why isn't he here explaining this?" Gabriella asked, "Why did he send you?"

"You wouldn't have let him talk to you," Liliana pointed out, "and he didn't send me, he has no idea that I'm here, he'd probably kill me if he knew, but somebody had to do something, and seeing as you two are both too stupid to do anything, I figured that I would,"

"He doesn't care," Gabriella, claimed, "he's never really cared, it was all an act,"

"Oh, that explains it," Liliana smirked, "it's an act, that's why he has all of those photo's of you all over his room, and according to Chad, in his locker, that's why he sits staring at his phone every night waiting for you to call, that's why he talks about you non-stop, even when he's asleep,"

"He talks about me in his sleep?" the older girl questioned, clearly trying to fight off amusement with her obvious anger.

"All the time," Liliana smiled, before adapting a serious look, "but if he asks, I didn't tell you that,"

"You're not lying to me, are you?" Gabriella asked, "you're not lying because I hurt him by leaving him?"

"Being apart from you is hurting him," Liliana assured, "I'm doing this to stop him from hurting, and if I stop you from hurting in the process, well that's just a bonus,"

"What do I do now?" Gabriella quizzed, "I can't just…"

"You know what to do," Liliana stated, "call him, I can guarantee he'll pick up,"

She smiled as she left; climbing back down the tree she had climbed up without another word, as she began running back home.

TROY glanced at his cell as it started ringing, seeing the picture he least expected to ever see, he rushed to pick it up, not wanting to keep her waiting.

"Hey," he greeted softly.

"I miss you," came a quiet voice from the end of the line.

"I miss you too," he agreed, "look, I know what I said, but I didn't mean it, you're what's important, you have no idea how long I have been waiting for this call,"

"I over-reacted," the girl answered, "I shouldn't have ran off like I did,"

"The only reason I said that stupid stuff was because I was scared, Gabriella, scared of what I'm feeling for you, but I'm not anymore, I promise you, just give me one more chance, I'll never let anything tear us apart again," he claimed, just happy to be talking to her.

"I'm scared too, Troy," she admitted, "I've never felt anything like this before, it's something really big for me to deal with…"

"But we can deal with it," he finished, "together,"

"Yeah," she agreed, he sighed with relief, knowing that he'd just been subtly forgiven.

"I love you," he told her for the first time, almost feeling her smile as he did.

"I love you too," she whispered back.

He smiled to himself, knowing that his life wasn't so bad after all, he was now deliriously happy, so happy, in fact, that he didn't notice the smile of his sister from outside his bedroom door as she silently congratulated herself.

"All in one night," she whispered to herself, "such an achievement,"

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**Somebody kill me now, I have just written, in all it's sickening glory, FLUFF, must kill fluff.**

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**Anyways, REVIEW!!!**


	7. Abandonment

**Ok, break time, I'm taking a few days off when it comes to writing, for two reasons:**

**A. I don't write enough oneshots, and they are what give me new ideas.**

**B. I have to try and let go some of my ip epilogue ideas.**

**OMG butter, what, there was a butter ad on TV, it happens.**

**Music!!!!! (I just put some on, exciting times)**

**You know what, these authors notes are taking me a long time, the last 2 lines, they were written a few hours ago, and the rest, about a week ago, it shouldn't take me a week to write authors notes, I guess it's all these distractions (soaps, my sister, my parents, exams, more soaps, charmed, ghost whisperer, greys anatomy, criminal minds, without a trace – I have a busy life)**

"I figured it out," Gabriella announced to her friend, smiling as the woman looked at her questioningly, "you want to be a nun,"

"Crazy," Taylor sighed, looking back down at the file that was currently in front of her, "you're crazy,"

"Want me to go look up some convent's on the internet?" Gabriella questioned, "you really will turn into a nun if you don't get out soon,"

"Haven't you got a fiancé to go home to?" Taylor quizzed, annoyance echoing in her voice.

"He's at work," Gabriella replied, "so I'm hanging out with you,"

"Oh, joy" Taylor answered sarcastically, " Why don't you go to work? Give you something to do other than bug me about nuns all day,"

"It's my day off," her friend explained, "so I decided to tell you that unless you go on a date soon, I'm going to personally take you to a convent,"

"It's always your day off," Taylor complained, giving up on reading the file and looking back up at her friend, "your boss most hate me,"

"He does not," Gabriella defended, an idea dawning on her, "hey, he's single, I can set you up with him,"

"Gabi, No," Taylor insisted, "You are not playing cupid, not for me, I am not going to date your boss, I'm not going to date anyone right now, ok?"

"But it was five years ago," Gabriella whined, intent on getting her friend to agree, "get out of here, go on a date, get over the past, I did,"

"You got over your past?" Taylor smirked, "you're engaged to your high school sweetheart, how is that getting over your past,"

"Well," Gabriella began, "in high school we were just dating, now we're planning a wedding, see, we were dating in the past, are engaged now and are getting married in the future,"

"I walked right into that," Taylor sighed, "you know, I remember six years ago, when you were that shy girl walking through the doors of East High for the first time, you were quiet then, sensible, I miss those days,"

"I grew up," Gabriella told her, "now it's your turn"

"Grew down more like," Taylor commented, finding it hard not to laugh at her friends excitement, "I swear, engagement's made you act like a kid, maybe I should stop you from getting married for your own good,"

"Speaking of which..." Gabriella started, cutting off her sentence, "never mind,"

"Tell me," Taylor spoke, sternly watching her friend, "what were you going to say?"

"Well...um..." Gabriella started again, "the wedding, well, he's going to be there, it wasn't my idea, I didn't want him there, but they're best friends, well they were, and he wanted him there,"

"You're rambling," Taylor stated, "repeat it, slowly, and in English,"

"Chad's going to be at the wedding," Gabriella rushed, biting her lip in anxiety as she waited for her friends reaction, surprised when she didn't immediately blow up, "they were best friends in high school, I couldn't say no, it wouldn't be fair,"

"You're going to make me see him?" Taylor asked, mixed emotions coursing through her, "I don't want to see him, he hurt me,"

"I know," Gabriella replied, "but you don't have to deal with him, you can avoid him, I'll make sure he stays away from you, but you have to come,"

"I didn't say I wouldn't," Taylor pointed out, "seeing him again will hurt, but not being at my best friend's wedding, that's a crime,"

"Are you mad?" Gabriella questioned, "I understand if you are, I was when I found out he'd be there,"

"I'm not sure," Taylor spoke, "I think I can overlook being mad if you stop talking about convents,"

"I guess I can do that," Gabriella agreed, "I'll just have to think of something else to annoy you with until you get a life and go out,"

"I go out all the time," Taylor finally defended, "almost every day,"

"I mean with a guy," Gabriella exclaimed, "seriously, if you don't go out soon, you're going to end up growing old with nothing but thirty cats for company, not even Kelsi and Shar will visit anymore, I will of course, because I'm amazingly kind, but it'll just be you and your cats,"

"Gab, I've got time," Taylor decided, "I'm twenty two years old, guys can wait a few years,"

"You'll be twenty three next month," Gabriella pointed out, "you're getting old, all alone, cat lady,"

"You're mean," Taylor told her jokily, "I don't think I want you to be my friend anymore,"

"Then you really would have no one visiting you when you're older," Gabriella smirked, "it'd just be you and your cats,"

"As opposed to you having a husband, eight kids and a dog called Zippy," Taylor smiled, "I think I'd rather have the cats,"

"Why does the dog's name have to be Zippy?" Gabriella asked, "why not something else?"

"So you agree with the eight kids?" Taylor smirked, "I never knew you were that brave,"

"Since when did I say I was having eight kids?" Gabriella asked, "you're imagination's running overtime, me, eight kids, not gonna happen, get over it,"

"Seven then?" Taylor teased, laughing at the look her friend gave her, "it's just a guess,"

"Four, if you must know," Gabriella replied, "two isn't enough, and three's odd, we decided on four,"

"We decided?" Taylor repeated, "You mean you actually talked about this?"

"Yes, we talked about it," Gabriella admitted, "we talk about everything, we could just sit, talking for hours without getting bored of eachother,"

"It's great that you have that," Taylor evaluated, "someone that you can trust no matter what, someone you can tell everything,"

"One day, you will too," Gabriella insisted, "and it'll be me at your wedding, you do need to go on a few dates first though, I'm not saying settle down right away, I'm saying that you should live a little, let people in, or you'll never have the future you planned with me in high school, besides, you don't want to turn up at my wedding alone,"

"What are you saying?" Taylor asked sceptically, "you want me to bring a date to you wedding, the wedding you're having in two weeks, that doesn't give me any time,"

"I didn't say date," Gabriella pointed out, "I just said that you don't want to come alone, I have friends from New York coming, from when I lived there, I could get one of them to pretend to be your date at least, then you won't be alone, and Chad'll think your over him,"

"I am over him," Taylor remarked, "that was years back,"

"Sure," Gabriella answered sarcastically, "that would be why you haven't been on a date since the two of you broke up, come on, please, for me,"

"Why do you want me to pretend to date your friend so badly?" Taylor asked, "It's weird, even for you,"

"It'll be fun," Gabriella tried, "and you never know, you could like him,"

"You say that about all the guys you try and set me up with," Taylor stated, "and it's never worked before,"

"How about you meet him first, then decide," Gabriella suggested, "it's not as if it's real or anything, it's just a pretend date,"

"If it'll make you happy," Taylor sighed in agreement, " when will he be here?"

"Tomorrow," Gabriella rushed, "he wants to help with last minute preparations, he's like that,"

"Do I call him he?" Taylor smirked, "or does he have a name,"

"Dan," Gabriella smiled, "Dan Yates, I've known him like, forever,"

"Does he know this you?" Taylor wondered, "the chipper, overly annoying you,"

"I am not annoying," she retorted jokily, "I've become free spirited, and you're predictable, I knew you'd say yes, so I cleared everything with Dan,"

"Of course you did," Taylor sighed, "how much did you tell him?"

"Everything." Gabriella grinned brightly, "in case he's asked anything, he needs to be able to give good answers," she glanced at the clock before gushing excitedly, "I have to go, I have a meeting with the wedding planner,"

"Bye," Taylor called after her friend, whom had already gathered up her belongings and was rushing out of the front door.

- - - -

Chad slowly made his way over to his friend, occasionally halted by other guests unintentionally stepping in his path.

"Congratulations guys," he smiled at them as he reached the, "I always knew you two would last,"

"So did I," Troy answered, his smile wider than his friends, "I knew from the moment I met her I was never going to let my wife go,"

Gabriella laughed slightly at his words before a look of indifference took over her features.

"I like calling her my wife," Troy explained her laugh, "so I keep doing it,"

Chad nodded, warily glancing at the brunette currently stood next to his friend.

"Gabs," he tried, "little sis, don't be mad,"

"You know what?" she responded, "how about you try not talking to me,"

"Baby, calm down," Troy soothed her, rubbing her back gently as he pressed a kiss to her temple, "go talk to your mom ok? I'll be there in a sec,"

Gabriella nodded and disappeared into the crowd.

Troy turned to his friend, "she wasn't happy about you being here, she said it was ok for me," he held his hand up to stop his friend from interrupting, "I never told you this before because I didn't want you to feel guilty, but you almost stopped this day from ever happening, because when you left Taylor without a word, when you just disappeared, Gabs started doubting ME, she thought I was going to do the same to her," Chad attempted to interrupt again but stopped as he saw his friend's expression, "It took me months to convince her that I wasn't going anywhere, that I love her, you're lucky I did, because if I had lost her because of you, being lonely would be the least of your worries,"

"Troy," came a voice from his side before his friend could speak, "your mom wants pictures outside, she's just gone to get Gabi,"

He nodded, surprised that the woman had actually approached considering who he was talking to, "Thanks Tay,"

"Hi Taylor," Chad quickly got in, attempting to gain her attention.

"Hello," she responded politely without even looking at him, "they're heading out to the patio,"

"We'd better go then," Troy answered, "you seen Zeke, Abby and Rainie?"

"Abby and Rainie were with your mom," Taylor told him, "Zeke's here somewhere with Shar,"

"Can you find him and meet me and the others out there?" Troy asked, "oh, and Gabi's parents too,"

Taylor nodded, walking off quickly in another direction.

"She won't talk to me," Chad commented, clearly disappointed.

"What did you expect?" Troy questioned, "did you think she'd come running back into your arms? That was never going to happen,"

"I thought she'd at least talk to me," he admitted, "I missed her, you know,"

"Back off," Troy warned, "she's happy now, don't ruin that," he was frowning as he glanced towards the door, "Gabs is the one you have to worry about anyway, do you have any idea how much you hurt her? You were like a brother to her, it wasn't just Taylor you abandoned 3 years ago,"

"I know, and I'll make it up to her," Chad tried, "I promise I'll make it up to her,"

"I think it'd be better if you stayed away from her," Troy put in quickly, "her and Taylor, Gabs'll be pissed if you go near Taylor,"

"I don't blame her," he sighed, "I hurt her, I hurt them both," he looked up, looking up at the door leading outside, noticing his friend's wife watching them, "you should go,"

"Yeah," Troy answered, following his friend's gaze before heading over to his wife.

- - - - -

Taylor frowned at the knock on her door, it was late, she wasn't expecting anyone. Gabriella wouldn't be back from her honeymoon for a week, and she was sure that Sharpay was out with Zeke that night.

She opened the door without checking to see who it was, attempting to slam it when she saw whom was standing at the other side, but his foot was jammed in the door before she got the chance.

"How did you find out where I live?" she hissed at him, "why are you still here anyway? Don't you have a life to get back to?"

"Tay," he tried, only to be silenced by her.

"No," she interrupted, "leave me alone, Chad. I don't want to hear your excuses,"

"Can't we just talk?" he questioned desperately, pushing the door open further, "have a conversation, like old times?"

"No"

"Tay, I'm sorry," he pleaded, "It was messed up. I was messed up. I know I shouldn't have left. You needed me. Gabs needed me, I let you both down, I know I did, but I hate not having you in my life,"

"It's too late now," Taylor informed him, frowning.

"It's not too late," he claimed, "please, you have to let me try and make it up to you, Gabs as well, please,"

"You left us," she hissed in reply, "and you know what, I can almost forgive you for leaving me, but her! You know how much she needs stability after all that moving around, it may not have been obvious to you or whatever, but the girl has abandonment issues, she spent her whole life leaving people and convinced herself that no one is ever going to stick around for her, and you, the guy she saw as her brother, you left her. We were both complete wrecks, if it wasn't for Troy and Shar I don't know what would have happened,"

"I'm sorry," he repeated, well aware that his apologies were now falling on deaf ears, "It was a great opportunity though, I knew you wouldn't come with me and I couldn't pass it up,"

"So you just left!" she exclaimed, "without a word to me, Gabs, Troy, even your parents! You didn't tell anyone, we thought you'd been murdered or something until your parents got that letter and cheque from you,"

"I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking straight," he excused, "I'll talk to Gabs ok, I'll talk to her when she gets back, tell her that I'm sticking around now,"

"I don't want you anywhere near her," Taylor insisted, trying to push him out of the door, "You don't deserve her forgiveness, you broke that girl, she thought you'd always be there for her, she thought you'd be there to give her away on her wedding day! You let her down, and it'll be better for everyone if you're gone before she gets back from Greece."

"Tay," he sighed, a hint of suggestion in his tone, "Are you transferring your own feelings onto Gabs and adding parts to them?"

"You have no idea how much you hurt us." she stated, her anger still obviously evident, "She won't forgive you and I won't forgive you,"

"I'm not leaving again," he informed her, "I'm here to stay, here to get my life back together, that includes you, and it includes Gabs, everything is going to be how it was, it's all going to be fine."

"You're delusional"

"No, Tay, it's going to happen," he responded, "that guy you were with at the wedding, he's irrelevant, everything is going to be just how it used to be, I promise you."

And he was right.

**Wow, sucky ending, but I don't like concluding all my stories, how it came about that he was right is completely up to you guys.**

**Anyways, review**


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